Movement will continue until democracy is restored: Rizvi

BNP Senior Joint Secretary General Ruhul Kabir Rizvi on Wednesday said that the movement will continue till the goal of restoring democracy is achieved.

Rizvi said this while speaking at a virtual press briefing amid the first day of the countrywide 48-hour blockade the BNP and its like-minded parties called on wednesday.

“Our leaders and activists will carry out every programme that the party will announce. Our destination is either a prison or a highway. There is nothing in the middle of these two,” Rizvi said.

“They can take us to prison, hurt us in many ways, torture us, but we will accept everything and this journey will continue till democracy is restored.”

Mentioning that member secretary of Dhaka Metropolitan East Chhatra Dal Al-Amin was picked by plainclothes members of the law enforcing agencies, Rizvi said, “We do not know where one of our student leaders is ...and how he is. Sheikh Hasina‍‍`s law enforcement agencies and their intelligence agencies are doing these things every day.”

This is for creating an overall anarchic and intimidating environment so that the BNP leaders and activists cannot continue their movement, but the government will fail, he said.

Rizvi condemned the killing of a female garment worker in a police attack on the garment industry workers while they were demonstrating for better wages at Konabari in Gazipur.

Rizvi claimed that more than 515 leaders and activists were arrested and 1,920 were sued in 18 cases in the last 24 hours amid countrywide blockade. “A total of 12,445 leaders and activists were arrested and 579 cases were filed since the October 28 grand rally.”

“The first day of the two days of blockade is underway amid so much oppression, torture and sabotage. The programme has been successful," he said.

“No long distance vehicles were run throughout the country. Because they didn’t get passengers. That means people have support to our programme,” he added.